Dubuque gambling facilities see increase in payment to charities

It’s been a profitable year for a northeast Iowa gambling operation and that means an increase in the state mandated money for donation to charities in the community. The Dubuque Racing Association and its Dubuque Greyhound Park and Casino is giving out more than ten-million dollars that’ll be shared by the city of Dubuque and area charities. The donation is up 40-thousand dollars from last year, a record amount. Bruce Wentworth is the association’s general manager and says it’s hard to know how a judge will rule on whether Iowa is unfairly taxing race tracks, when compared to other gambling facilities.The state hasn’t decided whether to appeal a decision from a state court that found Iowa -is- unfairly taxing race tracks. Wentworth is in Des Moines today for a meeting on the court ruling. He says the association’s budget is considered aggressive but not unattainable.